My
best English teacher in high school frequently remarked that the
entire literary world was turned upside down by the introduction of
inexpensive paperback novels. The class yawned as one. Paperback
books were all we could afford. Our experience with hard cover books
was mostly limited to text books which were expensive and heavy. A
simple market disruption, right?
Later
in life I began making paperback books, roughly at a time midway
between their introduction in the mid 1930s and these present days,
so the evolution of the paperback has finally become a subject of
some interest to me.
And
it turns out that it was much more than a simple market disruption.
My
birth occurred during the succinctly named Post War arts movement,
and that describes not only what the world had been up to, but also
the freedom of knowing that the war had ended and lives could be
picked up, dusted off, and even reinvented.
As
a card-carrying Baby-Boomer I also know that we Boomers were born
into a golden time in arts, science, and prosperity. Our parents
survived the Great Depression, the first globe encircling kill-fest,
and sat down with a beer in their brand new house in the suburbs and
said, “The world is a better place. Let's have some kids.”
And
here we are.
We
were born into a world that created a new theatrical art form, the
performers on stage much larger than life, not only speaking over a
musical background, but displayed gloriously in something called
Technicolor. Cars were no longer black or olive-drab with sputtery 4
cylinder engines; they were two-tone, even three tone sparkling
behemoths designed to resemble new-fangled fighter jets, sporting
snarling V8 engines. Weekly magazines glowed on the racks with
pictures from anywhere and everywhere in the world with realism that
pulled the reader into the moment. Colorful, modern design washed
over us.
As
part of the major design trends of those days, paperback books with
graphic, sometimes lurid, sultry, or macabre covers were waiting for
the GIs when they returned home. These wonders of mid-century graphic
design perfectly describe their time, the cultural evolution that
created them, shaped by technological advances, improved educational
systems, and employment that provided not only discretionary income
but also provided leisure time.
It
was technology that allowed the chap
books of the mid 17th
century to become dime
novels that began the 20th
century. Then with the print industry transitioning to better
production methods (photo-lithography), better paper at a better
price (enamel stocks print sharper color) and efficient new binding
systems (soft cover books), a revolution in book publishing,
In
1935, Allen Lane left as head of the London publisher Bodley Head to
single-handedly establish Penguin
Books, publishing literature in an affordable soft cover binding
that sold for roughly what a pack of cigarettes cost. His gamble was
so successful that for decades Penguin was a synonym of paperback.
Aware
of the success of Lane's venture, Simon & Schuster created the
Pocket
Books imprint in 1939 headed by Robert deGraff, who immediately
issued The Grapes of
Wrath as a 25¢ soft
cover, versus the $2.75 it took to purchase the hardcover.
Penguin
then brought in Ian Ballantine, a grad student from the London School
of Economics, to establish
the Penguin brand in the United States, but the books they
offered were reprints of
DeGraff
had plunged right in with graphic covers on Pocket Books from day
one, forcing Ballantine to surreptitiously begin to redesign the
Penguin classics with new splashy covers to compete.
When
Lane later discovered the altered covers bearing his company's name,
Ballantine left to establish Bantam
Books in 1945 and the three way race to American paperback
dominance was on.
This
new format probably could not have prospered using cover designs
found on hard cover dust jackets. Publishers sold the profitable
hardcovers to their traditional book audience, more attuned to works
of accomplished writers and who stored their books in cases that
lined the walls of their parlor, while the paperback was purchased by
readers that just wanted a good read.
Who
were these new readers?
Some
attribute the birth of this audience as the product of an improved
educational system. Literacy climbed rapidly in the first half of the
20th century.
But
Uncle Sam also had a role in the explosion of this seemingly new
market. Beginning in 1943, the Army and Navy began giving
away what would ultimately amount to 123,000,000 books to their
forces stationed around the globe. While established literary titles
were in the mix, the soldiers preferred the mysteries, westerns and
comedies.
Even
better, pre-war, most books were sold only in bookstores, but two out
of
Competing
for sales meant designing covers that had instant appeal, that caught
the eye while the display rack was slowly turning. This is the
genesis not only of a golden age of graphic artists and designers,
but the basis for many a collection of these wonderful books with
covers that ran the gamut of outrageous to grotesque.
Ultimately,
paperback covers acquired manners. Covers were tamed and having a
collection of paperbacks no longer painted one as a literary mutant
obsessed with all things seamy or violent. Only the Harlequin romance
novels continued to highlight low bodices and passionate embraces.
It's
a different time now. The graphic designers I've worked with
earnestly study the text for a sense of the story that they can
translate into something appropriate.
Where
once the front cover of the book on the rack helped to sell the book,
Borders and Barnes & Noble (and their regional clones) displayed
90% of their stocked titles in book cases with only the spine
exposed. And yes, designers vied to design books with eye-catching
spines.
I'm
not sure I even see a need to design
a cover for an ebook. While there are any number of web sites
willing to design one for a price, an ebook cover is to a paper and
ink book cover as a CD jewel case cover insert is to a vinyl LP album
cover: similar but without a “Wow!”.
More
efficient perhaps, but it makes the collecting of old paperbacks with
brash, exciting covers all the more enjoyable. They are unique to my
time, when I came of age hiding paperbacks from my parents, no matter
how innocent the content.
They
are a symbol, like flames painted on a deuce coupe, Elvis sinfully
gyrating on the Ed Sullivan show, brush cuts grown long and shaggy,
miniskirts that announced you were not a bobbysoxer, and the grief
and anger that exploded when America's youngest President was
assassinated. They not only baptized us, but marked us as a
generation that acknowledged no boundaries.
And
we're still here.
Additional
sites show-casing these incredible covers:
Very Sad but Not
Surprising
Islamic
militants in Iraq
looted and destroyed over 2,000 books from the Central Library of
Mosul, leaving only Muslim texts on the shelves. Two years ago,
the
library at Timbuktu was torched by Muslim insurgents but locals
had already smuggled the rarest and oldest texts to safety. You know
you're backing the wrong side when ignorance becomes a goal.
TPP
and Copyrights
As
details of the controversial and extremely polarizing Trans Pacific
Partnership (TPP) begin to surface, universal
imposition of the ridiculous American copyright enforcement period
has many nations threatening to walk away from the “secret”
negotiations. Thanks, Sonny
Bono.
Designing
with Fonts & Text
General
rules for using type and fonts aren't set in stone so don't be
afraid to experiment. However, I still find the current use of sans
serif fonts in magazines a pain, especially when the type is reversed
to white.
Rare
Books Left to Princeton
A
family's rare book collection begun 150 years ago has
been bequeathed to Princeton University. The collection included
six editions of the Gutenberg Bible and was estimated to be worth
$300 million.
Speaking
of Covers
In
the throes of a neurotic, digital ecstasy, a Dutch designer has
created a book cover that
“reads” the facial expression of the person holding it and
then decides whether or not to allow itself to be opened and read.
The
Dutch seem to have sooo much time on their hands.
Jet.com
Opens This Month
The
biggest threat to Amazon.com that you never heard of, jet.com,
has raised $600 million from investors and intends to open in
March. It will compete by using local stores to fill its orders,
eliminating warehousing and freight costs. Founder Marc Lore is a
former Amazon exec.
Libraries
at Airports
I'm
surprised that no one ever thought of this before: put
lending libraries in big airports. They offer everything from
paper and ink books to ebooks, musical CDs, even DVDs and they have
been generally very well received.
They
Smell so Good
Apparently
there are readers who resist ebooks simply because they don't smell
like anything but plastic. One of the joys I had in the shop was
watching publishers open that first carton of books, close their eyes
and inhale deeply. Leave it to the folks at Abe Books to tell us why
books smell so darn good.
Le
Morte d'Archie
This
June,
issue #666 of Archie Comics will be the last after over seventy
years of publication. Archie may return in a new comic book serial,
but its content and design are just in the planning stages. Life
with Archie
folded last year with issue #36.
Happy
Birthday, New Yorker
The
New Yorker magazine is
celebrating 90 years of publishing. Nine
original covers by New Yorker artists will be used on the special
edition which became available late in February, each
Family
Christian Stores Bankrupt
The
largest Christian chain bookstore with 266 stores in 36 states has
declared
bankruptcy to reorganize. Family Christian said debt that had
accumulated during the recession needed to be renegotiated.
Final
thoughts
“I
am eternally grateful for my knack of finding in great books, some of
them very funny books, reason enough to feel honored to be alive, no
matter what else might be going on.”
Kurt Vonnegut
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